The other day, I was playing “cat and mouse” with our two rather aged cats, Nikki and Simba. In this case, I was the “mouse”, as I twisted, turned, thrust and pulled a foot-long metal wire (a good cat toy) with a feather at the end. I say “aged”, because they’re both 14 years old as of last March. When you calculate it out, if a cat lives to be roughly 17-20 years old (at least the ones that live in the relative safety of a nice home), then, the average year equates to roughly 5 cat-years. Hmmm…5 X 14 equals 70 cat-years. Yet, the brother and sister tabbies look pretty much like they always did, though they do spend an inordinate amount of time sleeping these days. I remember back in 1995, when they were two tiny kittens, marveling at the speed of their movements while they were “sparring” with each other. If you’ve ever watched two kittens playing in a blurr of fur, you know what I mean. And here, “70 years” later, these old felines still have “got it”, albeit with a little less flash and losing their interest in the “mouse” after a couple of minutes. Is that not a worthy goal?…To maintain flexibility, agility, speed and power until a ripe old age?…To keep one’s mind vital, open, and knowledgeable?…To keep one’s spirit strong, pure and caring until the end.

Talking about aging, I just attended a small gathering (about 40 of us) of fellow Saint Louis High School graduates to celebrate the 40th year since we became “men”. Although we had all changed since graduation, I recognized most of them immediately, with a few gaffes and long stares at a few of them. Most of the attendees were quite successful in their chosen profession (perhaps these are the types who attend?) and I would guess that out of the 40 of us, perhaps a dozen were physicians/optometrists/dentists, about ten were attorneys, most of the remainder being engineers, accountants, businessmen and such. Interestingly, three (including me) were environmentalists and there was even an ichthyologist – fish scientist – in the group. Amongst this diversity of life’s work and after four decades, once we shook hands and began to talk, everyone magically became a young Saint Louis HS student and classmate once again. Most shocking to me, was the appearance of a couple of younger men in the group, whom I assumed to either be younger SLH graduates (we were, after all, at the SL Alumni Clubhouse in Moilili) hanging out with us, or perhaps; the offspring of a couple of us old guys who had accompanied their fathers to the reunion. Imagine my surprise, when they were introduced to me as fellow classmates! I stared for so long, but could not get beyond the thick black hair, casual and youthful demeanor and seemingly untroubled/unlined faces. As it turned out, they were both doctors, but the one I had known quite well in school was not recognizable to me, even at the mention of his name – he looked younger/healthier than I remembered from high school. Even more amazing was that he has become one of the few open heart surgeons in Hawai…we all joked behind his back, that perhaps he had access to some plastic surgeon techniques.

Anyways, I mention the reunion because the highlight for me, was getting the opportunity to talk to one particular attendee. He was drinking a beer, talking with another classmate, when I walked up to introduce myself. I couldn’t figure out which of my fellow graduates he was, as he looked familiar, perhaps had aged a little more than some of us, until someone told me, “This is Mr. Nakamoto.” Suddenly, everything snapped into place! This was my old math teacher and home room teacher for my first two years at Saint Louis…Mr. Newton Nakamoto (no relation). He taught me trigonometry and then calculus in my sophomore and junior years, and was one of two teachers that have always had a lasting impact on my life. Mr. Nakamoto retired from the school four years ago, after spending 44 years there, helping to give direction, guidance and knowledge to young men. He was not only a gifted math teacher (established the ILH Math League back in the 1960’s, which still exists), but a tough old teacher, the stuff that movies are made of – who towered over us all, at five feet plus a couple of inches. I got the chance to talk story with Mr. Nakamoto for perhaps a half-hour and found out that we were wrong to believe his seeming power/confidence/toughness came from some secret knowledge of the martial arts…he was simply a product of the tough streets of Palama; the youngest of eight children, whose father passed away when he was just one year old. He was slated to attend Farrington HS and described himself as a “rotten” young teen, when his mother was determined that her youngest child would become a member of Saint Louis. To honor his mother’s wishes, he spent inordinate portions of his teenage years working at multiple jobs to pay for his own schooling, and the day he graduated from SLH, no one was prouder than she. Having no money, he immediately went into the service during the Korean War and was able to subsequently use the GI Bill to attend and become only the second member of his family to graduate from college. He would return to his alma mater to become a teacher and example to thousands of young Crusaders. Although retired, he still often answers calls from the school to come in and substitute for an ailing math teacher; his devotion to the school and its students is that strong. As you might imagine, many former students still come up to him and talk about the old days whenever he runs into them. In my homeroom, there were two memorable classmates (I call them classmates, though technically, these were all ’68 grads whom I happen to share math class and homeroom with for two years) who stand out for me – and for Mr. Nakamoto: Jim Nicholson and Joe Peterson. Jim was a giant, even by today’s standards, standing 6’6″ and an all-star in both basketball and football (he still owns the ILH record for scoring 60 points in a high school basketball game). He went on to star at Notre Dame for legendary coach Duffy Daughterty and carved out an NFL career, playing for the old Kansas City Chiefs. Back in school, Jim was only perceived as a typical “I only attend school so I can play football” student. Yet, Mr. Nakamoto always sensed a fine mind within his huge frame. Today, Jim is a local attorney and last I heard, was the head of the Bar Assn. The other student from our homeroom, Joe, was also a football player, though he was also a good student. Joe went on to become an Army officer, graduating from the Santa Clara ROTC program. Today, he’s a three-star general, on active duty somewhere on the mainland. Over the years, both men have often come to pay their respects to their old teacher, who taught them so much more than just about sines, cosines, differentiation, or integration – he was instrumental in teaching them about values, about hard work, and about life. He did the same for me, and I am so glad I had the chance to finally thank him.

Oh-oh, gotta stop writing…the cats are meowing for some cat treats.